Evaluating the quality of the new textbook tiếng anh 10 developed under the national 2020 project

The current study aimed at evaluating the quality of the New Textbook Tiếng Anh 10 developed under the National Foreign Language 2020 Project to get feedback from teachers teaching it a

HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, VIETNAM UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES

****************

TRẦN THỊ MINH TRANG

EVALUATING THE QUALITY OF THE NEW TEXTBOOK TIẾNG

ANH 10 DEVELOPED UNDER THE NATIONAL 2020 PROJECT

(Đánh giá chất lƣợng của bộ sách giáo khoa Tiếng Anh 10 mới biên soạn trong

khuôn khổ của Đề án Ngoại ngữ Quốc gia 2020)

MA MINOR PROGRAM THESIS

Major: English Teaching Methodology

Code : 60140111

Hanoi - 2016

tự:……

HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, VIETNAM UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES

****************

TRẦN THỊ MINH TRANG

EVALUATING THE QUALITY OF THE NEW TEXTBOOK TIẾNG

ANH 10 DEVELOPED UNDER THE NATIONAL 2020 PROJECT

(Đánh giá chất lƣợng của bộ sách giáo khoa Tiếng Anh 10 mới biên soạn trong

khuôn khổ của Đề án Ngoại ngữ Quốc gia 2020)

MA MINOR PROGRAM THESIS

Major: English Teaching Methodology

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DECLARATION

I, Trần Thị Minh Trang, hereby certify that this thesis is the result of

my own research and the substance of this thesis has not, wholly or in part,

been submitted for a degree to any other university or institution

Hanoi, 2016 Signature

Trần Thị Minh Trang

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I would like to express my special and sincere thanks to

my supervisor, Prof Dr Hoang Van Van, who has given me great help with this thesis Without his experienced guidance, valuable suggestions and dutiful supervision, my research would be far from finished

I also wish to acknowledge my debt of gratitude to the staff members of the Postgraduate Department and the lecturers at College of foreign Languages, Vietnam National University for their valuable lectures, which provide me with scientific knowledge that help to fulfill the study

I am also thankful to many teachers of English and students at upper secondary schools in Ha Nam, teachers of English in certain upper secondary schools in Ha Nam Yen Bai, Dien Bien, Hai Duong, Vinh Phuc, Son La Provinces for answering the questionnaires and interviews

Last but not least, my thanks go to my family, especially my husband, who has given me so much love, patience and encouragement

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ABSTRACT

The basic goal of material evaluation is selecting teaching materials which are appropriately relevant for a particular teaching context The current study

aimed at evaluating the quality of the New Textbook Tiếng Anh 10 developed under

the National Foreign Language 2020 Project to get feedback from teachers teaching

it and students learning from it so as to establish its strengths and weaknesses and to see if it is suited to the teachers and students The study results showed that the New

Textbook Tiếng Anh 10 meets almost all criteria given and seemed to be highly suitable for Upper Secondary Vietnamese teachers and students and also got

positive feedbacks from teachers and students However, there is something that needs to be done to improve the quality of the materials The research consists of four parts The first part introduces the rationale, aims and objectives, research questions, scope as well as the significance of the study The second part is concerned with the literature review that the study mainly based on; the methodology that the researcher used to carry out this study as well as the findings

and discussion.Basically, Tieng Anh 10 was written with the high quality, meeting

most of the criteria for a modern language textbook In particular, it suits the teachers teaching it and students learning from it The last part provides a summary

of the strengths and weaknesses of the textbook as seen from the point of view of the teachers and students‟ evaluation It also and points out some limitations of the research and make some suggestions and recommendation for further study

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

DOET Department of Education and Training

CEFR The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages EFL English as a Foreign Language

ESL English as a Second Language

ELT English Language Teaching

GCSE General Certificate of Secondary Education

MOET Ministry of Education and Training

NFL The National Foreign Language

TA 10 The New English Textbook, Tiếng Anh 10

LIST OF CHARTS

Chart 1 Teachers and Students‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on Each

Category Chart 2 The evaluation of the teachers on nine categories

Chart 3 The evaluation of the students on the seven categories

LIST OF THE APPENDICES

APPENDIX 1 Questionnaire for teachers of the New English Text Book, Tiếng

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT iii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS iv

LIST OF CHARTS iv

LIST OF THE APPENDICES iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS v

PART A: INTRODUCTION 1

1 Rationale for the Study 1

2 Aim of the Study 2

3 Research questions 2

4 Scope of the study 2

5 Significance of the Study 2

PART B: DEVELOPMENT 3

CHAPTER 1 LITERATURE REVIEW 3

1.1 Introduction 3

1.2 Teaching and Learning English in Vietnam under the National Foreign Language Project Entitled: “Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages in the National Education System, Period 2008-2020” 3

1.2.1 Teaching and Learning English at Upper Secondary Schools in Vietnam 3

1.2.2 The National Foreign Language 2020 Project 4

1.2.3 The Pilot English Curriculum for Vietnamese Upper Secondary Schools 5

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1.3 The New English Textbook, Tiếng Anh 10 6

1.4 Textbook Evaluation 9

1.4 1 Textbooks 9

1.4.2 Roles of Textbook 9

1.4.3 The Needs for Textbook Evaluation 11

1.4.4 Quality Standards for Textbook 12

1.4.5 Textbook Evaluation Methods 15

1.4.6 Related Studies on Evaluation of the Textbook 18

1.5 Summary 19

CHAPTER 2 METHODOLOGY 20

2.1 Introduction 20

2.2 Research Method 20

2.2.1 Sites of the Research 20

2.2.2 The Subject of the Research: 20

2.2.3 The Participants 21

2.3 Research Instrument 21

2.3.1 Questionnaire and Interview 21

2.3.2 Survey Procedure 25

2.3.3 Methods of Data Analysis 25

2.4 Summary 26

CHAPTER 3 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 27

3.1 Recapitulation 27

3.2 Overall Rating 27

3.3 Teachers and Students‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on Each Category 28

3.3.1 Teachers‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Objectives” Category 28

3.3.2 Students‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Contents” Category 29

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3.3.3 Teachers and Students‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Layout and Design”

Category 30

3.3.4 Teachers and Students‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Topics” Category 30

3.3.5 Teachers and students‟ evaluation of the textbook on “Language Skills” Category 31

3.3.6 Teachers‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Methodology” Category 32

3.3.7 Teachers and Students‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Types of activities” Category 32

3.3.8 The Teachers‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Teaching aids” Category 32

3.3.9 Students‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Supplementary materials” Category 33

3.3.10 Teachers‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Linkage” Category 33

3.3.11 Teachers and Students‟ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Cultural values” Category 34

3.4 Summary of the main findings 36

3.4.1 Main findings for research question 1 36

3.4.2 Main findings for research question 2 38

3.4.3 Main findings for research question 3 39

3.5 Summary 40

PART C: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 41

1 Recapitulation 41

2 Conclusion 41

3 Limitations 42

4 Suggestions for Further Studies 42

REFERENCES 43 APPENDICES I

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PART A: INTRODUCTION

1 Rationale for the Study

English is one of the most common international languages in the world Learning English helps students form and develop their English communicative ability by practicing listening, speaking, reading and writing skills English learning

is also a beginning step in forming and developing long-life studying skills, working ability in the future and cultural-social activity participation at the same time Besides, English study gives students a chance to form their idea-expressing ability confidently, independently and creatively

With the thorough understanding of the importance of English, the quality of English teaching and learning has attracted considerable interest from the society Such issues as the quality of teachers, facilities, and curriculum have been widely discussed in the media In order to have a quality curriculum, the quality of the textbooks plays an extremely important role Nevertheless, a countless number of English textbooks are available on the market today The eyes can easily be deceived by colorful covers, a beautiful layout and attractive artwork As an inexperienced teacher it can be particularly difficult to know what to look for a good textbook for use Therefore, the selection of a course book is one of the most important decisions a teacher will make to have a textbook that involves matching the material against the context in which it is going to be used, following the aims

of the teaching program, as well as fitting the personal methodology of the teacher

In 2008, the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has implemented its policy of radical and comprehensive reform, in which the quality of education, teachers and textbooks has received a lot of special attention When working on the national project “Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages in the National

Education System, period 2008 - 2020”, at the end of 2012, MOET approved “Pilot English Curriculum for Vietnamese Upper Secondary Schools” continuing the

Primary and Lower Secondary Pilot English Curriculum and assigned Vietnam Education Publishing House to organize the writing of the set of textbooks,

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including Tiếng Anh 10, Tiếng Anh 11 and Tiếng Anh 12 This set of textbooks is

being piloted in some selected upper secondary schools nationwide But there has not been any research to evaluate its quality in a large scale For this reason, in this minor thesis, I will attempt to conduct a preliminary research to evaluate the set of

textbook The New English Textbook Tiếng Anh 10 compiled by Vietnamese

authors of Vietnam Education Publishing House in collaboration with English native authors of Pearson Publishing House

2 Aim of the Study

The aim of the study is:

To evaluate the quality of the New English Textbook Tiếng Anh 10, from the point

of views of its users (teachers and students) so as to find out its strengths and weaknesses and to see if it is suited to the teachers and the students

3 Research questions

1 To what extent does Tiếng Anh 10 suit the teachers who are teaching it?

2 To what extent does Tiếng Anh 10 suit the students who are learning from it?

3 What are the strong points and weak points of the new textbook Tiếng Anh 10?

4 Scope of the study

Given the aim and the research questions, the study is confined to the

evaluation of the new set of high school English textbook, Tiếng Anh 10 The study will focus on establishing the criteria for the evaluating the new textbook Tiếng Anh

10 (including Student‟s Book, Teacher‟s Book and Workbook, Audio CD) to ask

teachers and students who are using the material to evaluate whether the teachers can use it to teach and the students can learn from it

5 Significance of the Study

This study can be significant in some ways First, the study aims at getting the evaluative feedback from teachers and students working with this material in order to see how suitable it is for their teaching and learning context and to establish its strengths and weaknesses The more significant intention, the researcher has expected that the study will be of some value to textbook writers and upper secondary English teachers in Vietnam

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PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1 LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 Introduction

This chapter will explore the literature to establish the evaluation criteria, formulate a problem or research enquiry and will define the value of pursuing the line of enquiry established The first part of the literature review will be involved in the teaching and learning of English in Viet Nam under the National Foreign

Language Project entitled “Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages in the National Education System, Period 2008-2020”, in which, teaching and learning

English at upper secondary schools and the pilot foreign English curriculum The second part of the literature review will look at issues related textbook evaluation such as roles of textbook, the need, quality standard and method of textbook evaluation The last part of this chapter will present the related studies on evaluation

of the textbook

1.2 Teaching and Learning English in Vietnam under the National Foreign Language Project Entitled: “Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages in the National Education System, Period 2008-2020”

1.2.1 Teaching and Learning English at Upper Secondary Schools in Vietnam

Teaching and learning English at upper secondary level have attracted great interest from schools, parents, managers and educational strategic planners as well

According to Hoang Van Van (2010), English has been introduced into upper secondary schools since the period before 1954 Although English made its presence during that period, it did not become a foreign language to be learnt as widely as French

In the period from 1945 to 1954, English was the dominant foreign language

in upper secondary schools in the South while in the North Russian dominated the first place in upper secondary schools English was taught in only some classes in those schools in towns and big cities as pilot subject

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In the period from 1975 to 1986, when Russian dominated the scene both in the North and in the South, English suffered a setback It was taught in a limited number of classes in upper secondary schools, particularly in towns and in big cities

The period from 1986 up to the present can be seen with the rapid growth and expansion of English in Viet Nam This English boom was mainly because of the

initiation of an overall economic reform known as Đổi mới (Renovation) The reform

started at the Six National Congress held by Vietnamese Communist Party In the context of economic renovation and of the open door policy, English became foreign language number 1 be taught in Viet Nam At upper secondary education, it is one of the six compulsory examinations that students have to pass if they want to get the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE)

1.2.2 The National Foreign Language 2020 Project

The Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) is currently launching the Project entitled “Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages in the National Education System, Period 2008-2020” which was approved by the Prime Minister on September 2008 (For more details, see Appendix 4) The National Foreign Language (NFL) 2020 Project specifies the goals of teaching and learning English within the national education system and identifies seven tasks at both macro and micro level for implementing the project in three different phases (2008-2010, 2011-2015 and 2016-2020)

The main goals of the project include increasing the use of foreign languages, mainly English in teaching and the foreign language competence amongst Vietnamese young people: so that “… by 2020 most Vietnamese youth whoever graduate from vocational schools, colleges and universities gain the capacity to use a foreign language independently This will enable them to be more confident communication, further their chance to study and work in an integrated and multicultural environment with variety of languages This goal also makes language

an advantage for Vietnamese people, serving the cause of industrialization and modernization for the country”

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In implementing the Vietnamese Prime Minister‟s Decision 1400/QD-TTg on the approval of the national project entitled “Teaching and learning a foreign language in the national education system, Period 2008-2020”, three pilot English curricula for Vietnamese schools were designed and promulgated by MOET Chương trình tiếng Anh thí điểm tiểu học (Pilot English Curiculum for Vietnamese Primary Schools), Chương trình giáo dục phổ thông môn tiếng Anh thí điểm cấp trung học cơ

sở (Pilot English Curiculum for Vietnamese Lower Secondary Schools), Chương trình giáo dục phổ thông môn tiếng Anh thí điểm cấp trung học phổ thông (Pilot English Curiculum for Vietnamese Upper Secondary Schools)

1.2.3 The Pilot English Curriculum for Vietnamese Upper Secondary Schools

Also according to Hoang Van Van (2015), the Pilot English Curriculum for Vietnamese Upper Secondary Schools is designed to implement the Prime Minister‟s Decision (on the 23rd November, 2012,) The Minister of Education and Training

signed Decision 5209/QĐ-BGDĐT on the Approval of Chương trình giáo dục phổ thông môn tiếng Anh thí điếm cấp trung học phổ thông (Pilot English Curriculum for

Vietnamese Upper Secondary Schools) The curriculum is organized around two main parts: (i) Curriculum Framework and (ii) Syllabus

The Curriculum Framework provides general orientations such as principles of curriculum design, objectives of the curriculum which includes general objectives, specific objectives, and performance objectives, curriculum content which provides four macro-themes, definition of communicative competences, linguistic knowledge and skills, teaching methodology, assessment, and conditions for effective curriculum implementation It can be noted that this pilot curriculum among three pilot curricula shows a high degree of continuity, coherence and integration This can

be seen in the fact that the level of proficiency required for the higher level is developed on the level of ability that students have gained at the lower level Further,

in terms of performance objectives, there is a continuum running from primary to lower secondary and to upper secondary level so that on finishing primary level students will have reached the equivalent of CEFR level A1, on finishing lower secondary level students will have reached the equivalent of CEFR level A2, and on

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finishing upper secondary level students will have reached the equivalent of CEFR Level B1 The second thing to note is that in all three pilot English curricula, performance objectives are consistently and coherently related to the four

communicative language areas of listening, speaking, reading and writing which, in a

continuum, cover all 10 grades of the three educational levels

The Pilot English Curriculum for Vietnamese Upper Secondary Schools is designed and developed with the total time frame of 315 periods, from grade 10 to grade 12 In regard to principles of curriculum design and development, after finishing the curriculum, students will be able to reach B1 level as specified in the CEFR

In order to reach these aims, the curriculum is specified based on the performance objectives They are built to help upper secondary students form and develop English communicative competence through 4 skills: Grade 10 (Level 3.1), Grade 11 (Level 3.2), Grade 12 (Level 3.3)

Students‟ study results are shown in 2 forms of assessments: formative and summative forms Basing on the facts of communicative competence students have achieved in their learning process The forms of testing also rely on teachers‟ observation and feedback during the school year Forms of testing are various comprising of both written test and oral test, and is a combination of 4 language skills

1.3 The New English Textbook, Tiếng Anh 10

Tiếng Anh 10 - is the first of the three-level English language set of textbooks

for the Vietnamese upper secondary school students learning English as a foreign language (EFL) The teaching contents for each unit are summarized in a book map which is provided on the first page of the textbook It is accompanied with an audio

CD, student‟s workbook and teacher‟s book and is divided into two volumes: Tiếng Anh 10, Volume 1 and Tiếng Anh 10, Volume 2

The book follows a systematic, cyclical and theme-based curriculum, approved by the Ministry of Education and Training on November, 2012 The aim of this set of textbook is to develop students‟ communicative competence in listening,

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speaking, reading and writing so that when finishing upper secondary school students will achieve Level 3 (equivalent to CEFR B1) of Six Language Proficiency Level Framework as developed in CEFR ( Common European Framework of Reference for Languages)

Each Student‟s Book (Volume 1 and Volume 2) contains

 A book map which provides information about the sections of each unit and the structure of the book

 5 topic-based units, each comprising 5 sections taught in eight minute lessons

45- 2 review units providing revision and further practice of the preceding unit, taught in two 45-minute lessons

 A Glossary section providing phonetic transcription of the new words

of the units and their Vietnamese equivalents

The Teacher‟s Book gives full procedural notes for teaching different parts of each unit and suggestions for the teaching techniques which teachers could use depending on their teaching contexts It also provides the answer keys to the exercises in the Student‟s Book and the audio script

The Workbook mirrors and reinforces the content of the Student‟s Book It offers further practice of the language skills taught in the class, and four additional tests for students‟ self-assessment

The CD includes the audio for the listening activities and recording of the reading passages

There are ten teaching units and four review units Each teaching unit covers a topic and is structured into different sections: section 1: Getting started, section 2: Language, section 3: Skills, section 4: Communication and Culture, section 5: Looking Back and Project Ten units richly illustrated, cross-curricular and theme-based units focus on offering pupils motivation, memorable lessons and a joyful learning experience of English Clear lessons follow a logical progression and include a wide range of learning styles with activities that help pupils develop coordination, critical thinking, pre-language skills as they learn to speak and understand English

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The Pilot English Curriculum for Vietnamese Upper Secondary Schools is designed and developed with the whole time of 315 periods, from grade 10 to grade

12 in which the time for grade 10 is 105 periods

The performance objectives of the textbook for 10 graders are designed based

on the 4 communicative skills as follows After finishing grade 10, with the text length between 200-220 words in listening skills, students can follow clearly articulated speech in everyday conversation, though they sometimes have to ask for repetition of particular words or phrases They can understand the main points in selected TV programmes on familiar topics when the delivery is slow and clear Moreover, they can understand the simple technical information, such as operating instructions for everyday equipment

In speaking skills, students can start, maintain and close simple face-to-face conversations on topics that are familiar or of personal interest They also can express and respond to feeling such as surprise, happiness, sadness, interest and difference and agree and disagree politely and give advice

In reading skills, within the text length between 220-250 words, students can understand the main points in short texts about current and familiar topics They are able to understand the most important information in short, simple everyday brochures In addition, they can understand simple messages and standard communications (e.g from club, social organizations and school authorities)

In writing skills, with the text length between 140-160 words, students can write personal messages to friends or acquaintances asking for or giving them the news and narrating events They also can write simple text about experiences or events (e.g about a trip, for school newspaper or a club news letter) They are also able to write a simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest

The themes and topics of the New English Textbook, Tiếng Anh 10, is

embedded in a systematic, cyclical and theme-based curriculum, approved by the Ministry of Education and Training on November, 2012 There are for main themes, each main theme contains three topics: Our lives (Family Life, Healthy Lifestyle, Entertainment), Our Environment (Cultural Diversity, Preserving the Natural

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Environment, Eco-tourism), Our Society (Serving Our Communities, Inventions that changed our lives, Gender and Equality) and Our Future (New ways to learn, Colonizing other planets, Using the World Wide Web for learning)

1.4.2 Roles of Textbook

We are living in a multimedia age, although there are advantages of using a computer to teach and learn a language, no matter how advanced technology is, it is obvious that textbooks still play a key role in the education today

According to Hoang Van Van (2012), textbooks are an important resource for teachers in assisting students to learn They are the foundation of school instruction and the primary source of information for students and teachers They serve as one of the main instruments for shaping knowledge, attitudes and principles of our young people It is no exaggeration to say that “much of the language teaching that occurs throughout the world today could not take place without the extensive use of materials (textbooks)” (Richards, 2001) And in the opinions of many contemporary scholars (e.g Allwright, 1995; Cunningsworth, 1995; Gonzales, 1995; Tickoo, 1995; O‟Neill, 1995; Hutchinson & Hutchinson, 1997; Richards, 2001; Ur, 2001; and Harmer, 2005), textbooks are important to and useful for students, teachers,

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education administrators, and, therefore, they are important to and useful for the

2020 Project as well Here we only state the roles of textbook for students and teachers

 Without textbooks, students think their learning is not taken seriously

 A textbook is the cheapest way of providing learning material for each leaner, alternatives, such as kits, sets of photocopied papers or computer software, are likely to be more expensive relative to the amount of material provided

 Students can use textbooks to learn new material, review and monitor progress with some degree of autonomy

 A textbook is a convenient package It is bound, so that its components stick together and stay in order, it is light and small enough to carry around easily;

it is of a shape that is easily packed and stacked; it does not depend on its use

on hardware or a supply of electricity textbook is a source of activities for students to practice and communicate

 A textbook is a reference source for students on grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation

 A textbook is a source of stimulation and ideas for classroom activities

 A textbook serves as the basis for much of the language input students receive and the language practice that takes place in the classroom

For Teachers:

 A textbook provides the foundation for the content of lessons, the balance of the skills taught, as well as the kinds of language practice the students engage

in during class activities

 For novice teachers, a textbook means security, guidance, and support, and a form of teacher training If teachers have limited teaching experience, a

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textbook together with the teacher‟s guide can serve as a medium of initial teacher training by providing ideas on how to plan and teach lessons as well

as formats that teachers can use

 A textbook provides ready-made teaching texts and learning tasks

 A textbook provides a clear framework: teacher and learner know where they are going and what is coming next, so that there is a sense of structure and progress

 A textbook provides texts and learning tasks which are likely to be of an appropriate level for most of the class This saves time for the teacher who would otherwise have to prepare his or her own materials

 A textbook can provide effective language models and input It can provide support for non-native teachers who may not be able to generate accurate language input on their own

1.4.3 The Needs for Textbook Evaluation

The ever increasing number of textbooks on the market makes formulating the right choice in textbooks difficult (Cunningsworth, 1995); (Green, 1926) Textbook selection can have a massive impact on the teaching and learning process as teachers would make references to the textbooks (Cunningsworth, 1995; Harmer, 1991) or even design the entire EFL syllabus around it In that sense, the quality of a textbook might be so important that it can determine the success or failure of an ELT course (Green, 1926) However, textbooks are often purchased without careful analyses (Green, 1926) Frequently, a textbook selection is not based on its intrinsic pedagogical value, but of the perceived prestige of the author and or the publisher (Green, 1926), or skillful marketing by the publishers (McGrath, 2002) Preference is given to books printed in attractive covers or that teaches would blindly use the best-selling textbooks which are used in many other places (Green, 1926; Tomlinson, 2010) A number of studies have suggested that most current global, local ELT textbooks are developed for commercial purposes but are not based on principles of language acquisitions and development recommended by scholars and educators (Tomlinson, 2003; 2008) Financial success has become the primary goal of textbook

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publishing (Sheldon, 1988) “Textbooks, like any other book that publishers print, are pieces of merchandise; the ultimate objective of their production is for commercial success” (Dendrinos, 1992: 35) Instead of contributing positively to student‟s development in the acquisition of the English language, many textbooks are

in fact leading to learner‟s failure in acquiring the language and in the worst case, contain serious pedagogical flaws and practical shortcomings (Litz, 2005)

According to Tomlinson (2008), the cause of learning failure is twofold The first cause of failure is that possibly motivated by the need of commercial success, publishers would have to produce according to the public demand Textbook writing

as a result is molded according to the liking of teachers, parents and administrators with a heavy focus on teaching of linguistic items instead of creating opportunities for students to acquire the language (Tomlinson, 2008) Also, teachers tend to choose textbooks that are designed to allow for minimal preparation for their classes (Tomlinson, 2008) The second cause of failure is that instead of focusing on how learners could actually benefit from using textbook, textbook writers relied on their intuition and produce materials what they think would work best for their intended learners (Tomlinson, 2008: 7) They are biased toward perceived rather than actual need of learners In view of the above, it is therefore very important for us to conduct EFL textbook evaluation so as to ensure ELT textbooks can effectively facilitate the attainment of our teaching objectives, and at the same time, be economically viable

to teachers and students Wrong choice of textbooks would be likely to negatively affect both teaching and learning Financial resources would also be wasted (Sheldon, 1988)

1.4.4 Quality Standards for Textbook

According to Ornstein (1990), a good textbook has many desirable characteristics They were all organized, relatively up to date, and accurate A good textbook must be well organized Here, textbook must have a good composition of instructional materials The materials must be organized clearly and contain of all English skills A good textbook is relatively up to date It means that the material of the textbook must contain the newest things, so it will give some new news or

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information to the students Besides, “up-to-date” here also means up-to-date methodology The ESL textbook should be consistent with the psychological and linguistic principles underlying current and accepted methods of 2nd language teaching Ornstein also presumed that a reliable textbook should be guidance for non-native teachers It can provide appropriate guidance so that novice teachers have no doubts on the procedures proposed by the textbook A good textbook should be accurate In this case materials in the textbook should not present wrong information

or presented in error grammatical language and incorrect words A good course book, according to him, is also the need for the second language learners and the relevance to the socio-cultural environment Textbook must suit multilingual settings and have the distinction between English as a subject and English as a medium of instruction in order to meet the demand of the students It should be relevant to the socio cultural environment because the 2nd language problems in learning vocabulary and syntax often arise from differences between cultures associated with the target language and the mother tongue

According to Murcia (2001), a textbook categorized good if it is viewed from the whole aspects of the textbook They are subject matter, vocabulary and structure, exercises, illustration, and physical appearance A textbook is good if: The subject matter covers variety of topics which are suitable with the curriculum The ordering

of materials is arranged in logical form; the content grade is appropriate with the students‟ need; and the materials are accurate up to date The vocabulary and structure which is used is appropriate with the students‟ grade; The vocabulary items are controlled from the simple to complex one; The new vocabularies are repeated in the next chapter to make the students‟ memory stronger; The sentences length is suitable with the students‟ level; the structures gradually increase in difficulty level

to suit the growing ability of the students; the words that are used are the daily words, and the sentence structures follow normal word order; the sentence and paragraph follow one another in logical sequence; and linguistic items are introduced

in meaningful situation A textbook can be said good if the exercises develop comprehension and test knowledge of main ideas; involve vocabulary, structures, and language skills which build up the students‟ ability; Provide practice in different

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types of written work (like sentence completion, spelling and dictation, guided composition, and others); cumulatively test new materials; and develop meaningful communication by referring to realistic activities The illustration of a good textbook should create a favorable atmosphere by depicting realism and reaction; be clear, simple, free, and interesting; and directly related to the content to help the learners in understanding the text The last aspect is physical appearance The cover is durable enough; the text is attractive; the picture on the cover can make the students are interested; and the size is suitable with the students‟ handle

In the book entitled “The Guide for the Good Textbook” Ivi‟c, Pesikan and Anti‟c, (2008) attempt to define general quality standards for textbooks In their research work, quality standards for the following areas have been defined as:

Group A: Quality standards for textbook sets

Group B: Quality standards for textbook as books for student use

Group C: Quality standards for thematic units

Group D: Quality standards for textbook content

Group E: Quality standards for the didactic design of textbooks

Group F: Quality standards for the language of textbook

Group G: Quality standards for electronic textbook components and electronic textbooks

Mamood (2009) based on studying internationally available criteria for textbook evaluation and Garvin‟s (1988) eight dimensional model of quality product, and, later on finalized them with the following characteristics of a textbook

i Conformity to curriculum policy and scope

ii Vocabulary and format

iii Horizontal and vertical alignment of the text

iv Acceptability

v Text reliability

vi Cognitive development and creative thinking

vii Learning and Assessment

viii Bias free: diverse background of students, gender equality

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With various standards for a quality textbook, the writer selects the most common quality standards to evaluate the textbook in terms of Objectives, Layout and Design, Topics, Language Skills, Methodology, Types of Activities, Teaching Aids, Linkage and Cultural Values These quality standards cover almost all the aspects that are necessary for evaluating a certain textbook

1.4.5 Textbook Evaluation Methods

Impressionistic and In-depth Method

A famous ELT textbook evaluative researcher, Cunningsworth (1995) has suggested that it would be best for textbook evaluation schemes to adopt a “leveled” approach in evaluation in which a first level overview “impressionistic” evaluation should be conducted followed by an in-depth evaluation

Impressionistic evaluation is conducted by quickly looking through the textbook cover to cover to try and get an overview of the strengths and weaknesses

of the book An in-depth evaluation will be undertaken subsequently to provide a detailed evaluation of specific items in each textbook on areas such as how the exercises can cater for the syllabus and learners‟ needs (Cunningsworth, 1995; McDonough & Shaw, 1993)

Pre-use Evaluation Method

Pre-use evaluation proposed by McGrath (2002) and Tomlinson (2003) involves making decisions about the potential value of materials for their users

In-use Evaluation Method

In-use (McGrath, 2002) or whilst-use evaluation (Tomlinson, 2003) involves measuring the value of materials while using them or observing them as being used

Post-use Evaluation Method

Post-use evaluation (McGrath, 2002; Tomlinson, 2003) measures the actual effect of the materials on the users As Tomlinson (2003: 25) states, post-use evaluation can measure the actual outcome of the use of the materials and thus provide the data on which reliable decisions about the use, adaptation or replacement

of materials can be made

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Checklist Method

A checklist is an instrument that provides the evaluator with a list of features

of successful learning-teaching materials As Tomlinson (2003) suggests, checklists are categorized separately into quantitative, qualitative, or outline format Quantitative checklists are those that utilize rating scales with or without accompanying questions Qualitative checklists are those that use close/open-ended questions without rating scales and outline format checklists are those without any rating scale and questions of any kind

Harmer (1998) states that there are nine main areas which teachers should consider in the books they evaluate: Price (5 items), Availability (6 items), Layout and Design (5 items), Methodology (3 items), Skills (5 items), Syllabus (4 items), Topics (5 items), Stereotyping (4 items), and the Teacher‟s guide (5 items) The weighting in this checklist is based on the descriptive answers provided by the users

In this study we exploited certain categories as Layout and Design, Skills, Topics to design our questionnaire

Rivers (1968) presents a set of criteria for textbook evaluation which is based

on seven major areas: Appropriateness for local situation (including 6 evaluative items), Appropriateness for teachers and students (10 items), Language and Ideational content (6 items), Linguistic coverage and Organization (9 items), Types

of activities (6 items), Practical consideration (7 items), and Enjoyment index (1 item) Each of these evaluating items also includes several questions that aim at evaluating some features The rating system in River (1968; 477-483)‟s checklist is based on a 5-point scale: Excellent (1), Suitable (2), Will do (3), Not very suitable (4), and Useless (5) We also used Language and Ideational and Types of activities categories in Rivers‟ checklist to establish our own evaluative criteria

Daoud and Celce-Murcia (1979) cited in Celce-Murcia, (2001) introduced a broad evaluative checklist They consider five major components for the textbook in their checklist: Subject matter (including 4 evaluative items), Vocabulary and Structures (9 items), Exercises (5 items), Illustrations (3 items), and Physical make-

up (4 items) Also there is a section for teacher‟s manual which includes four major parts: General features (including 5 evaluative items), Type and amount of

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supplementary exercises for each language skill (6 items), Methodological/pedagogical guidance (7 items), and Linguistic background information (4 items) The rating system is based on a 5-point scale: Excellent (4), Good (3), Adequate (2), Weak (1) and Totally lacking (0) In this study, the researcher referred evaluative category, Methodological guidance to design the questionnaire for the teachers

Sheldon (1988) presented a checklist that includes two main categories: Factual details and Factors Factual details contain The Ttitle, Author, Publisher, Price, Physical size, Duration of the course, Target learner, Teacher, and Skill Factors include Rationale (3 evaluative items), Availability (2 evaluative items), User definition (3 evaluative items), Layout/graphics (2 evaluative items, accessibility (4 evaluative items), Linkage (3 evaluative items), Selection/grading (3 evaluative items), Physical characteristics (4 evaluative items), Appropriateness (3 evaluative items), Authenticity (3 evaluative items), Sufficiency (2 evaluative items), Cultural bias (6 evaluative items), Educational validity (1 evaluative item), Stimulus/practical revision (3 evaluative items), Flexibility (3 evaluative items), Guidance (6 evaluative items), and Overall value for money (2 evaluative items) The assessment in this checklist is based on a 4-point scale: Poor, Fair, Good, and Excellent Sheldon‟s criterion of Linkage was also employed by us to make our own questionnaires for both teachers and students

The most recently, on December 14th 2015, the Vietnam MOET finished and enacted the decision No 31/2015/TT- BGDDT on the checklist for English Textbook evaluation and organization The decision suggests the checklist under the following categories: General prioritized attributes (4 evaluative items), Aims, Objectives and Methodology (10 evaluative items); Content and Language Skills (22 evaluative items); Layout and Graphics (5 evaluative items); Supplementary materials (3 evaluative items) The assessment in this checklist is based on the grading scale: 0 point, 1 point and 2 points Supplementary materials category was also referred in our survey

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1.4.6 Related Studies on Evaluation of the Textbook

Al-Hojailan, (1999) investigated the quality of the English third grade secondary textbook, English for Saudi Arabia The study used both quantitative data collection methods and statistical test analysis, supported by qualitative data and content analysis The participants in the study were teachers and supervisors The questionnaire contained 8 criteria The results of the study revealed support for the book's Appearance, Accompanying materials, Academic content, Cultural content, and Evaluation techniques Disagreements appeared in terms of the national goals and the teaching methods The implications of the study included merging the textbook, the Workbook, and the Writing Book; stating the educational goals in the Teacher's Manual; inserting pictures in the book's cover to make it attractive; increasing grammar; adding free composition, translation, and dictation; putting in model tests; and updating the book's topics every five years

Saeed Roshan (2014) investigated into the comparative critical evaluation of

New Interchange and New Headway Pre-intermediate series two, well-known

series employed in EFL/EFL contexts The evaluation is done in terms of two assumptions; firstly, cultural and ideological assumptions, and secondly, assumptions

about language, language learning and best practice Findings reveal that both New Interchange and New Headway texts reflect ideological and cultural assumptions

through their focus on the US and UK way of life respectively The pictures and the material are found biased towards the culture of these countries in their depiction of local cities and lifestyles and in the inclusion of subjects.The study gives some suggestions for improving the usability of these books in the context of Iran

Most recently, Hoang Van Van, (2015) conducted a survey on “Teachers‟ Evaluation of Primary English Textbooks for Vietnamese Schools Developed under the National Foreign Language 2020 Project: A Preliminary Internal Survey” to get evaluative feedback from the teachers who are using the primary English textbooks

to find out their strengths and weaknesses so that further corrections and revisions will be made to perfect the materials The author used the questionnaire consisting of

52 items to ask teachers to evaluate the textbooks The participants of the study were teachers who are piloting the textbooks in 92 primary schools The results of the

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study have shown that teachers‟ evaluations of the textbooks are very positive The textbooks are written with high quality, meeting most of the criteria for a modern foreign language textbook and the requirements of MOET‟s Pilot English Curriculum for Vietnamese Primary Schools The research results, however, have also suggested that there are still some minor drawbacks of the textbooks in the categories of “General issues” and “Components accompanying Student‟s Book” that need to be improved to perfect the materials before putting them into use on a large scale

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CHAPTER 2 METHODOLOGY 2.1 Introduction

This chapter will present research methods used for the study It will first present the sites of the research, the subject of the research and the participants Then it will present in details the categories of the questionnaires for teachers and students as well as the interviews for the teachers and students

2.2 Research Method

2.2.1 Sites of the Research

The first intended research site to conduct the evaluation of the New

English Textbook, Tiếng Anh 10 is at two upper secondary schools in Ha Nam

Province namely, A-Binh Luc, and Ly Nhan Upper Secondary Schools These

two schools are among six schools in Ha Nam which are piloting Tiếng Anh

10 Each school has two classes of this material trialling with the number of

students ranging from 40 to 45 All students in these classes passed the proficiency test designed by Ha Nam Department Education and Training (DOET) involving four English skills More importantly, in each school, the principal selected two qualified English teachers to try this material out Besides, the two schools targeted have good physical and teaching and learning facilities such as standard classroom, sufficient CD players, computers, etc

The second research site to conduct the evaluation of the material is at the 52 day workshop held in Hanoi University from November 10th to December 31st, 2015

2.2.2 The Subject of the Research:

The subject of the research is the New English Textbook, Tiếng Anh 10

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2.2.3 The Participants

The participants of the research include English teachers who are teaching the New English Textbook and 10th form students who are learning from the textbook

The participants of this research are four English teachers who are

teaching Tiếng Anh 10 at four above mentioned classes in Ly Nhan Upper

Secondary School and A-Binh Luc Upper Secondary School

However, four intended English teachers in two above-metioned schools are not enough for our survey Luckily, in the workshop held at Hanoi University, the researcher had an opportunity to meet with 74 school English

teachers in eight northen provinces Among them, 26 teachers are usingTiếng

Anh 10 to teach their students The reseacher invited them to be under the

survey in this study and they were willing to help

Besides, the participants of the research are also 150 students learning at

Ly Nhan and A-Binh Luc Upper Secondary Schools We chose these schools for two main reasons First, Ly Nhan Upper Secondary School is the place where the researcher is working in and A-Binh Luc Upper Secondary School used to be the place where the researcher studied at Therefore, it is convenient

to collect the data from the students as well as their English teachers Second, these two schools are situated in the two big towns in Ha Nam Province They have students coming from both urban and rural areas Accordingly, the data got from students may be more objective

2.3 Research Instrument

2.3.1 Questionnaire and Interview

To accomplish the aim as set above, questionnaire and interview were employed as research instruments

The reason for choosing questionnaire is that of all the research instruments, questionnaire is the most commonly used format (Trochin, 2005;

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Cohen, Manion & Morison, 2007; Hoang Van Van, 2015); it is the least expensive which can be sent to a large number of respondents and can allow easy and quick data collection (Robinson, 1991; Bargiela-Chiappini, Nickerson

& Planken, 2007)

An email interview was also chosen for research instrument to get opinions of the teachers The reason is that the email interview reduces costs associated with data collection and participants have time to think of their responses before they send them, often leading to responses which are detailed, thoughtful and richer (Mann & Stewart, 2000; McCoyd & Kerson, 2006: 397)

Informal interview was identified as the most appropriate method to compliment the other main methods employed in this research to get opinion from the students The informal interviews were conducted after the survey information had been obtained to clarify information from the surveys The results of the interviews were noted; any variance thus can be revealed and adjusted with other methods

As mentioned, for the purpose of this study, a questionnaire is developed to evaluate the quality of the textbook The researcher bases on the quality standards to select appropriate criteria for evaluation For a questionnaire, the more aspects it covers the better it is for the evaluating process The questionnaire for teachers includes two steps In step 1, we studied carefully the questionnaires developed by many researchers and organizations and selected the most common and appropriate criteria for textbook evaluation In step 2, a draft questionnaire based on the common criteria selected in step 1 was designed and piloted to the sample of all 30 above mentioned teachers to check its validity and reality The piloted questionnaire then was re-edited as seen on the point of view of the teachers using the material (This way is, to some extent, like the way we design a test Before composing the real test, the test designers often design the pre-test to see which test items are appropriate) After obtaining the results from the piloted survey and basing on the factual circumstances of our thesis, we composed the one for teachers consisting 35 items These criteria can cover all the basic aspects to evaluate the textbook Our

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questionnaire for teachers falls into nine major categories and the one for the students consists of seven major categories as follows:

Questionnaire for teachers

The questionnaire for teachers consists of nine categories and is presented in the detail below

A Objectives, consisting of 2 items, asks teachers to evaluate the suitability

between objective of the textbook and the level of 10th graders (item1), the objectives of the textbooks, and time allocation (item 2)

B Layout and Design, consisting of 3 items (3, 4, 5), asks teachers to

evaluate the appropriateness of photos, pictures, tables and diagrams, quality of paper and binding, the appropriateness of appearance, colour, layout, and size of the textbook

C Topics, consisting of 4 items (6, 7, 8, 9), asks teachers to evaluate the

diversity of topic, familiar topics, real and natural used language, and fun elements

D Language Skills, consisting of 8 items, asks teachers to evaluate the

appropriateness of the listening texts (item 10), the diversify and relevance of the listening activities (item 11), the appropriateness of the listening activities being practiced in context (item 12), the appropriateness of speaking topics (item 13), the diversification of the speaking activities (item 14), the appropriateness of the reading texts to the units of the textbooks (item 15), the diversity and richness of the reading texts (item 16), the appropriateness of writing tasks to students „age and social background, and the length of writing tasks (item 17)

E Methodology, consisting of 3 items, asks teachers to evaluate the activities

of the textbooks to help students to use English outside the class (item 18), the ability

of the textbooks to help teachers exploit activities (item 19), and the ability of the textbooks to help teachers and students localize activities (item 20)

F Types of Activities, consisting of 4 items, asks teachers to evaluate the

diversity of activities in the textbooks (item 21), the instruction of the textbooks (item 22), the appropriateness of the number of unit to students (item 23), and communicative exercises of the textbooks (item 24)

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G Teaching Aids, consisting of 6 items, asks teachers to evaluate the quality

of the audio CDs and accompanying components (item 25, 26), the quality and suggesting abilities of Teacher‟s Book (item 27, 28), and the ability to consolidate, support and expand linguistic knowledge and communication skills of Workbooks (item 29, 30)

H Linkage, consisting of 2 items (31, 32), asks teachers to evaluate the

coherence of the textbooks and the topics and content of the textbooks to connect students‟ daily life and experience

I Culture Values, consisting of 3 items, asks teachers to evaluate

Vietnamese culture contents of the textbooks (item 33), British and American contents of the textbooks (item 34), and the suitability of the content of the textbooks

to students‟ background knowledge and social environment (item 35)

Questionnaire for students

The questionnaire for students consists of seven categories We built the questionnaire for the students mainly based on the one for the teachers However, we replaced Objective and Methodology category by Contents category because students are not able to answer the questions of Objective and Methodology The questionnaire for students is presented in the detail below

A Contents, consisting of 6 evaluating items, asks students to evaluate the

aids for the learning pronunciation (item 1), the techniques for learning grammar (item 2), the skills for learning vocabulary (item 3), guidance for reading (item 4) devices for writing (item 5), the advantages of project part (item 6)

B Layout and design

F Supplementary materials, consisting of two evaluating items, asks

students to evaluate the quality of the audio CDs and the help of the workbook

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To facilitate the teachers‟ evaluation process, the questionnaire is presented in

a Likert-type scale, in this case a five-point scale: Excellent, Very good, Not very

good, Not good 100% of the questions are close-ended

2.3.2 Survey Procedure

Before sending the questionnaire to the students, the researcher contacted the headmasters of the two schools, Ly Nhan Upper Secondary School and A-Binh Luc Upper Secondary School where the intended students are learning to ask for permission to carry out the survey During the evaluation process, the respondents could communicate directly with the researcher to receive detailed instructions to ensure that all the items in the questionnaire were fully and accurately evaluated

The researcher also asked for permission to carry out the survey for four English teachers teaching in these four classes

The survey for the teachers was carried out during the 52 day-workshops for English teachers in the 2020 Project held in Ha Noi University from November to December, 2015

The questionnaires for both teachers and students were written in Vietnamese (in this study it is translated into English) to make sure that all the items in the questionnaires were equally understood

After getting the data from the questionnaires, if the researcher was not clear about the teachers‟ answers or any evaluating items were left blanked, the email interview instrument could be used Similarly, the formal interview instrument could

be used for the students if any of their answers were unclear enough The interviews surely helped the researcher clarify the responses of the teachers and the students in the questionnaires

2.3.3 Methods of Data Analysis

Data was quantitatively calculated using Microsoft Excel for statistics and was converted into percentages from overall average percentage of 35 items to average percentage of nine categories as described in Section 2.1.3, and to percentage of each item Then the percentage of those categories will be shown in the form of the column chart for being clearly seen For convenience of presentation and

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observation, except for the overall evaluation and the evaluation of nine categories, the evaluation of each item in each column on the five-point scale was analyzed and presented following the order: the number of respondents and the percentage that number accounts for out of 20 respondents of the textbook participating in the survey (for more detail, see Appendices 1 and 2 [both English and Vietnamese Versions])

2.4 Summary

In summary, in this chapter, the researcher has presented the main information regarding the sites and the subject, the participants of the research, research instruments and the survey procedure The researcher has also presented method of data analysis that is used to reach the aim of the study at the same time Data collected from the study are both quantitative and qualitative The results of data analysis are revealed in the next chapter

3.2 Overall Rating

The first questionnaires were sent to teachers in the early December, 2015 in

the Workshop at Ha Noi University and were returned to the author on the later days

of the same month 30 teachers were under survey and all of them returned the questionnaires, accounting for 100%

The second questionnaires were sent to the students of two schools, Ly Nhan Upper Secondary School and A Binh Luc Upper Secondary School on the last days

of their school year They had just finished their final examinations and were going

to have their summer holidays so they were very ready to be under the survey The number of questionnaires delivered is the same as the number of those returned to the author: 150, accounting for 100%

From the results obtained, it can be said that, in general, both the teachers and

the students have a positive view of the quality of the New English Textbook, Tiếng Anh 10 This can be seen from the table that, the overall rating of the teachers of Tiếng Anh 10 on 35 items at the three scales Excellent, Very good and Good is high:

93.4% The numbers of percentage are 19.6%, 37.3% and 36.5% respectively However, there is 6.6% of teachers rating the set of book as Not very good and no one rated the book set as Not good

The overall evaluation of the students of Tiếng Anh 10 on the 31 items is also

high with 86.1% (17.7% students rated this textbook set as Excellent, 25.2 % as Very good and 43.2 % as Good However, the percentage of students rated the book set as

Not very good is 11% and Not good is 2.9%) (See Chart 1 below)

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Chart 1: The overall rating of the teachers and the students on the textbook

3.3 Teachers and Students’ Evaluation of the Textbook on Each Category 3.3.1 Teachers’ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Objectives” Category

The results obtained from the “Objectives” category show that the evaluation

of the teachers on the new textbook, Tiếng Anh 10 is positive Overall, the average

rating of the teachers of this textbook set on two items at three levels Excellent, Very good and Good is quite high, 81.7%, of which 10 % rated as Excellent, 25% rated as Very good, 46,7% rated as Good Besides, 18.3% teachers rated this item Not very good and 0% rated as Not good Regarding the evaluation of particular items, first, with regards to the suitability of the textbook‟s objectives to the 10 graders (item 1), 4 teachers (13.3%) rated as Excellent, 11 teachers ( 36.7%) rated as Very good and 13 out of 30 teachers (43.3%) rated as Good Only 2 teachers (6.7%) rated as Not very good and no one rated as Not good Secondly, concerning time allocation for the textbook‟s objectives (item 2), there are 2 teachers (6.7%) rating the textbook as Excellent, 4 out of 30 teachers (13.3%) rating it as Very good, 15 teachers (50%) rating it as Good However, there are 9 teachers (30%) evaluated the text book Not very good and no teacher rated it as Not good

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The interview was conducted to collect the teachers‟ opinion of item 2 in this category The interview confirmed that they could not exploit all amount of knowledge as well as activities given by each lesson because of the time limitation and students level Only for the class with the large number of students better at English and with the condition that teacher asks students well prepare the lesson before hand, the objectives of the textbook can be fulfilled

3.3.2 Students’ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Contents” Category

The results obtained from the Contents category show that the evaluation of

the students on the new textbook Tiếng Anh 10 is quite positive Overall, the average

rating of 6 items by the 150 students of this textbook set at three levels Excellent, Very good and Good accounts for 84.6 % (with 14.4% Excellent, 23.9% Very Good and 46.3% Good) 11.2 % students rated as Not very good and 2.9% students rated as Not good Regarding the evaluation of particular items, the items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 were approximately high rated with the percentage numbers of total three first scales are 84.9%; 86%; 82.6%; 88.7%; 82%; respectively Item 4 about Writing was highest rated with 16.7% Excellent, 27.3% Very good and 45.3% Good Only 8% (12 students) rated as Not very good and 2.7% (4 students) rated as Not good Although the percentage is much above the average, item 6 about the Project part was rated the lowest with in this category with the total percentage of three scales Excellent, Very good and Good is 78.6 % (13.3% Excellent, 24% Very good, 41.3% Good) There are 19 students rated this item as Not very good, making up of 12.7% and 13 students rated it as Not good, accounting for 8.7 %

The interview was also conducted to collect the opinion on this item The students interviewed shared that this part is rather difficult for them They have to use the language knowledge and skills they learnt throughout the unit in a realistic situation They have to do a survey or research that they have not been well familiar with They have to involve in teamwork and not all of them have the teamwork skills and experience Sometimes their teachers do not instruct them clearly so they can finish their tasks Some other students said that although they prepared their oral and

teacher rated as Not very good and Not good (See Chart 2) A little bit lower than the

result got by the teachers, the overall rating of 3 items (items 7, 8, 9) (with the same content with items 6,7,8 in the questionnaire for the teachers) by the students is 82.9% 22% of the students rated as Excellent, 25.6% rated as Very good and 35.1% rated as Good 13.6% and 3.5% students rated as Not very good and Not good,

respectively (See Chart 3)

3.3.4 Teachers and Students’ Evaluation of the Textbook on “Topics” Category

As can be seen from the Chart 2 that 87.5% teachers highly appreciated the

new textbook Tiếng Anh 10, of which 18.3% rated as Excellent, 32.5% rated as Very

good and 36.7 rated as Good 12.5 % rated as Not very good and 0% rated as Not good Item 6(enough variety and range of topics), item 7 (familiar topics to the students) and item 8 (real and natural language) received good feedback from teachers Only 1 teacher (3.4%) thought that the topics of the textbook were not varied 3 teachers (10.1%) thought that the selected topics were unfamiliar to students Only 1 teacher believed that the language in the textbook was unnatural and

unreal (See Appendix 1) However, in terms of the fun elements (item 9) in this

category, there were 10 teachers believing that the funny elements were not fully exploited in this textbook

Similarly, 87.1% students highly appreciated the textbook in the “Topic” Category 20.7 % students thought this category was Excellent, 28.2% thought it was Very good and 38.2% thought it was Good Yet, 9.6 students thought it was Not very

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good and 3.3% thought that it was Not good The fun elements in this category was also evaluated lowest with 11.3% students rated as Not very good and 8% rated as

Not good (See Appendix 2)

The interview was also conducted to collect he teachers and students‟ opinion

on this item In general, both teachers and students asked thought that the fun elements are not only important for the pupils at early age but students in the upper-secondary level They shared that more fun elements should be provided in the textbook because it is better for the learning process

3.3.5 Teachers and students’ evaluation of the textbook on “Language Skills”

Category

Teachers‟ average rating of 8 items in the “Language skills” section at three levels Excellent, Very good, and Good accounts for 92.9% and that of students makes up of 88.5% 19.6% teachers rated these 8 items (about the skills of Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing) as Excellent, while the percentage number of students is 17.8% 34.6% teachers rated this section as Very good while that of students is 27% 38.7% teachers rated “Language skills” Category as Good while that of students accounts for 43.7% Only 7.1% teachers rated it as Not very good and no teacher rated it as Not good However, 9.6% students rated it as Not very

good and 1.9% students rated it as Not good (See Charts 2,3) Item 15 (the suitability

of the reading contents to the topic of the unit and to the age of the students) was highly appreciated by teachers with 6 out of 30 teachers (20%) rated as Excellent, 9 out of 30 (30%) teachers rated as Very good and 15 out of 30 (50%) rated as Good Item 17 (the authentic writing content suitability of the writing contents to the topic

of the unit and to the age of the students) was evaluated not as high as other items with 83.4% of the total three first evaluating scales There were 5 teachers (16.6%) rated as Not very good This item was also evaluated not so high as other items by students with 20 out of 150 students (13.3%) rated as Not very good and 4 students

(2.7%) rated as Not good ( See the Appendices 1, 2 )